I Hate Valentine's Day
by CierraTheAlaskanDragonSlayer
Summary: Leaf Green hates Valentine's Day. But will a certain spiky-haired teen change her mind? LGS short story. Minor CS, PS, and IKS.
1. Chapter 1

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_**I Hate Valentine's Day **_

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Four words. Eighteen letters. Six syllables.

I hate Valentine's Day.

Those four words, eighteen letters, and six syllables always come to mind this time of year. When there's thousands of red and pink hearts scattered at every corner, pink and purple streamers hanging off of the ceilings, and extremely corny—not to mention stupid—love letters fluttering out of every pretty girl's locker.

Some people might find this time of year exciting—romantic, even. But in my opinion, Valentine's Day is really just a big waste of time.

And, I swear this to Arceus, if I see _one_ more box of chocolate; I'm going to let all of these love-sick fools take it up with Venasuar.

"Hey, Leaf!" called a familiar feminine voice behind me.

Turning my head slightly to the left so I can glance behind me, I spot my bandana-wearing best friend, May Maple, hurtling towards me. A few particularly annoyed teenagers sent glares as she bumped into their shoulders.

"Hi, May," I greet just as she reaches me. May smiles breathlessly as she leans her hands on her knees, panting. After giving her a minute to catch her breath, I start to move forward. May follows closely behind.

"Aren't you supposed to be headed to Geometry?" I ask. "For like the 100th time, it's that way, May." I point down a hallway to our left that leads to the West wing of the school.

May starts to shake her head, then stops short. "Well, yeah, but I want to ask you something first."

I raise my eyebrows as if to say, _Go on_.

"W-well, um...," May mumbles, and it's only then that I notice how red her ears are.

I suppress a giggle. "Spit it out," I say.

"So… you know how there's the Valentine's Day dance coming up next weekend?" she asks carefully, her eyes looking anywhere but me.

I groan. "Yes, I do. But what's your point? You know I hate Valentine's Day. Unless…" Eyeing her suspiciously, I tease, "Are you trying to ask me out?"

May's eyes widen in disbelief, and I can't seem to stop myself from laughing maybe a little bit too hard. "Leaf!" she whines. "Not that I totally wouldn't ask you out, but there's kind of someone else that I'm trying to refer to…"

Getting my laughter under control, I grin at her. "If I totally didn't hate Valentine's Day, I'd _so _ask you out, too," I joke, and we both burst out laughing again. "But if not me, then exactly _who _were you referring to?"

May blushes again. "U-um…" Gulping, she whispers in a voice so quiet that I think I hear her wrong, "Drew."

But, still, even if she had screamed it at the top of her lungs, I probably would have heard her wrong.

"Drew?!" I practically screech, my arms waving around in shock. Several students turn to stare at us curiously, causing May and I to cringe.

"Would you keep it down?" she whisper-shouts, walking a bit faster and turning down a hallway that doesn't lead to either one of our classes. Shoving me into the girl's bathroom and into the handicapped stall, she locks the door and sighs in relief.

"I thought you hate Drew," I hiss. I'm really just testing her, though. Everyone knows that May and Drew are head-over-heels for each other, but for May to actually _realize _it… it's practically a miracle.

May sighs. "I… I never said I hate him."

"I can think of several instances."

"Okay, yeah, I have said it a lot. But I never actually meant it, you know? It's like you and Gary: you guys are always saying you hate each other, but everyone else says that you're secretly dating or something."

My eyes widen. "What?!" I yell. "Who says that? You know it's not true, right?"

May laughs. "Everyone except me, you, and Gary, I guess. And of course Gary's fan girls. But, yeah, I had a feeling that you two aren't really 'together' per say, but I do think you like each other."

I glare at her. "Well, we don't. Now tell me more about Drew." Changing the subject has never been my strong suite.

"We… um…" She sighs again. "He kissed me yesterday. It was like, out of nowhere and… Even though he confuses the heck out of me, I think I like him now."

I squeal, jumping up and down. "He kissed you?! No way! Omigosh! What was it like?" Sure, I've been kissed before, but as far as I know, May hadn't.

"It was quick. Like a peck on the cheek, only not on the cheek… heheh. I don't really think he meant to, or maybe he just didn't realize what he was doing, 'cause he pulled away really fast… yeah."

I frown. "Oh. Well, just take a chance and ask him out! If he says no, which I doubt he will, it's not like much will change. You guys fight all the time anyway."

"That's true," May says. "Okay, I'll ask him to the dance." I could see her confidence building, and I give her a pat on the back.

Just then the warning bell rings. "Maybe you should do that _after _school. Let's go, we only have two minutes to get to class and yours is on the other side of the building," I say, unlocking the stall and pushing May out.

"Thank you, Leafy."

"No prob."


	2. Chapter 2

Ugh. Why are guys such douches? It's like, the whole school knows I hate Valentine's Day, but guys make it their mission to ask me out anyway. They all think that they can "change my mind", but they so can't. Valentine's Day will always be a stupid holiday to me. (Worst. "Holiday". Ever.)

And then there's this one guy, Gary—the one May and I were talking about earlier—he's the most infuriating of them all. He's smug, a nuisance, a womanizer, and most of all—dim-witted.

Gary has been my rival since we were kids. You see, we live next door to each other, and he has a girl over practically _every day_. I'm not 100% sure on what exactly they do together (though I have a pretty cringe-worthy idea), but what I do know is that he's a pig.

A pig who tried to ask me to the dance twenty minutes ago.

Yes, he has asked me out several times since we were about nine-years-old. But he had always said it in such a teasing way that I never even considered the possibility that he might actually like me.

This time was different though. He started out teasing, but when he actually got to asking me… he seemed so serious. (And, of course, I slapped him in front of the whole school, but really, details, details.)

And now I'm just confused as hell. I don't know what to do.

I know that I'll apologize next time I see him, but I don't think that I'll take him up on his offer. I mean, let's take a look at the pros and cons of this situation:

Pros –

1. I could possibly restore my love for Valentine's Day.

2. We end up being the perfect couple and live happily ever after.

Cons –

1. I could possibly hate Valentine's Day for the rest of my life.

2. We end up being the worst couple in history, and he'll dump me like the other 120-something girls he's dated and I die alone.

3. Get mauled by his fangirls and my social life ruined forever by nasty rumors.

So, as you can see, the cons definitely outweigh the pros.

Next time I see him (which will most likely be in about ten minutes) I'll apologize for slapping him, but I will also turn him down just like any other guy.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy, right?


	3. Chapter 3

It has been a week since I apologized to Gary. He didn't exactly take it very well, saying that I "embarrassed him in front of the whole school." I was like, "You had it comin', dude." He didn't respond to that very well, either.

But on the bright side, May finally asked Drew to the dance a few days after our talk. They're not officially together, but they have definitely grown a lot closer. Just this morning, Drew pecked her on the cheek before running to class. It was _so _cute.

As they say, "The grass is always greener on the other side." But, unfortunately for me, I haven't made it to the other side yet, so how should I know if the grass is _really _greener? Gary got me so confused with his seriousness when he asked me out last week that I don't even know what to do anymore. I thought that I hated him. But I keep going back to that day and seeing his eyes… They showed so much truth in them, and I just didn't know how to respond to that.

The Gary Oak Fan Club reacted pretty well to my rejection of Gary's invitation to the dance. Sure, they got on my case about slapping his "beautiful angel face" but in the end were happy that I had said no.

But now I'm not so sure that I made the right choice. I know it's stupid, but some part of me that I'm sure all girls have is saying, "Maybe if you say yes, it'll be different. Maybe you'll be 'the one' for him and he won't break your heart in three days. Maybe you'll fall in love."

I've had to banish those thoughts from my mind several times every day. I mean, there is _no way _that I like Gary-mother-freaking-Oak. There can't be, especially after the way he's treated me our whole life, and how he's treated other girls.

It is final.

I can never fall in love with Gary Oak. Ever.


	4. Chapter 4

The Valentine's Day dance is in three days and I am livid. I literally feel like I'm about to explode.

All of the girls in school are going crazy over what they should wear to the dance, and I've heard one-too-many comments from guys saying who they're "gonna nail" afterwards. Disgusting pervs.

This is another reason why I hate Valentine's Day. Guys think that just because they serenade you with chocolates, poems, love songs and other random gifts that they can get into your pants. It's ridiculous; I never want to get myself into one of those situations. It's probably also why nobody wants to become an official couple with me anymore, because I won't give them what they want.

Ugh. Why are guys so frustrating? And I'm not just talking about Valentine's Day month, either.

Sigh. Anyway, my close friend Misty finally got the guts to ask out my other childhood friend, Ash, to the dance. He's as dense as a box of rocks, so of course he thinks that they're going "as friends" but what he doesn't know won't hurt him, I guess. Misty's a bit of a feisty one, but she still has a very kind heart and is probably the coolest girl in school, even if she's not too popular.

And my other sort-of friend Dawn somehow managed to get the Ice King, Paul, to defrost a little. Enough that he accepted her offer to the dance! It's practically a phenomenon around here, considering he is called the "Ice King" for a reason.

Dawn and I haven't always seen eye-to-eye. In fact, we used to be enemies until May came along. You know my hate for Valentine's Day? (I've said it so many times that I'm pretty sure it's drilled into your brain by now.) Well, Dawn is the exact opposite. She _loves _Valentine's Day. Like everything about it. There isn't one thing that she finds uninteresting.

But when May moved to town about a year ago, she taught us that it's all right to have different opinions about things and still be friends. That's how she became a great friend to both of us, because she sits right in-between loving and hating Valentine's Day.

"Yo, Green!" someone calls behind me, startling me out of my thoughts.

I whip around. "Yeah?" I ask, searching for the person that the voice belongs to.

I am so surprised to see Drew walking over that I almost don't hear what he's saying to me. "Gary says to tell you to leave your window unlocked tonight." Drew smirks and winks at me. "You guys doing something 'gross', as May calls it?"

My cheeks start to burn. "N-no! Ewwwwwwwwwwww," I say loudly, cringing. "Oh my Arceus, I think I'll have that image burned in my brain forever now. Thanks a lot, Drew!" Smacking him upside the head, I turn around and stomp away. Drew starts laughing hysterically. "Oh, and make sure to tell Gary I said, 'No way in hell, perv!'"

By the time I get far enough away so that I can't hear Drew's laughing anymore, I suddenly recall what he had said.

I am going to have a brain malfunction if this image does not go away by the end of class.


	5. Chapter 5

That night, Gary Oak breaks into my room through the window. Seriously, he has some kind of tool that actually allows him to unlock it, and then he just climbs right in like he owns the place! Can you _believe _him?

"Leafy," he calls casually, as if he broke into people's houses every day.

"Gare-bear," I spat. Two can play at this game.

Gary chuckles. "Why so hostile? You act as if I'm a burglar or something."

"No, but you sure as hell came in like one!"

"_Tsk_. Language, Leafy."

"Shut up! If you came here to insult me, then could you please leave? You're gonna wake my sister up, and you know how she is!"

Gary visibly pales. "Aqua sure is, uh… something," he mumbles awkwardly.

"Evil," I correct slowly. "So I suggest you leave before she hears you and writes one of her crazy stories about us again!" My sister has few rather disturbing love stories that star Gary and I. She's obsessed with getting us together. Like _that _will ever happen.

Gary shakes his head. "I'm not leaving until you agree to go to the dance with me."

"What? No!" I whisper-shriek, my head shaking back and forth so fast I think I might get whiplash.

"Then I'm not leaving," Gary says in a final tone. His voice grows louder as he goes on, "And I'm going to keep raising my voice higher and higher until you agree to go with me."

My eyes widen, and I can feel my mouth gaping open.

"Oh, Aqua! Come see Leafy and I! We're about to start making out!" he says almost loud enough for my sister to hear. If he raises his voice even two more notches, it'd definitely wake her up.

"No, stop, please!" I beg. "Why do you want me to go so badly with you?"

Gary winks at me, his voice lowering huskily. I shiver. "Simple. You don't want to. And, well, because I know that once you spend a romantic evening with _the _Gary Oak, your mind will change about Valentine's Day forever."

I glare at him, hoping that it covers up the fact that his shameless staring is giving me goose bumps and my legs are turning to jelly. "My mind will never change about Valentine's Day. You know why I hate it, so why would you try to change my perspective?"

Gary's gaze softens. "I know you're upset about what happened, Leafy. That guy was a jerk; you deserve much better."

"And that's supposed to be you?" I ask incredulously. "You're just like him, Gary! You two are so similar it's maddening. That's why I always say no! Because I know that you'll do exactly what he did: break my heart when I don't give you what you want. Toss me to the curb like I'm nothing but a lost little puppy. Tell the whole school you got into my pants and that I'm easy." I don't even realize that I'm crying until the tears drip off my chin. "Guys are all the same. They only think about one thing, and when they don't get it, they ruin you…"

"Leaf, I—"

"Just go. If you leave, I'll go to the dance with you. But don't expect me to be nice, polite, or tolerant. If you want me to be your date, I'm going to make sure we both have a miserable time, got it?" I sniff as quietly as possible and sink into my bed, my back facing away from him.

Gary doesn't say anything on his way out.


	6. Chapter 6

So tonight's the dance. And it's also Valentine's Day, one of the worst days of my life.

I tried as hard as possible to avoid Gary all day yesterday, but today, he won't leave me alone. I can tell he's pretty excited that I agreed to be his date, but I wish he'd just tell me that it was okay and that I didn't have to, because I _really _ don't want to. I'd rather just stay home, watching sad movies and eating ice cream.

My friends say that it's great that I'm going with Gary, but it really isn't. I don't want what happened to me three years ago to happen again, and my mind keeps saying, "Don't do it! Don't do it! Do you want what happened three years ago to happen again? Then don't do it."

But my heart is saying something else. I can't really determine what, but it's all fluttery and it starts thumping harder every time I think about going to the dance with Gary.

I don't know what's wrong with me! I need a cure! Someone, please help me! I beg of you!

Putting my drama queen tendencies aside; Gary is seriously getting on my nerves. I'm thinking about faking the flu or something just to get him off my case. I was highly emotional when I said I would go with him, and he so took advantage of that. I'm pretty sure that that had been his plan all along—get me worked up enough that I finally agree if he leaves me alone. I can't believe I fell for it, too.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dawn waving at me to come over to her. Knowing Dawn, if I shake my head no she'll track me down until I hear what she has to say, so I decided to give her two minutes before I left. It's not that I don't like Dawn; our friendship is just rough around the edges.

"Hey, Leaf," Dawn pipes once I get close enough to hear her. She beams at me. "What are you going to wear tonight? You haven't been to the last two Valentine's Day dances, and the whole school is totally shocked that you're going. They all want know what 'Green the V-Day hater' will be wearing." She winks.

My eyes widen. "Shit," I murmur under my breath, mentally slapping myself across the face. Who forgets to buy a dress for the school dance? Me, that's who.

"What?" Dawn asks me, confused.

"I, um… I sort of forgot to buy a dress," I mumble slowly, though it ends up sounding more like a question then a statement.

Dawn gasps loudly as if someone just told her the world is going to end in ten minutes. "You _forgot_?!" she exclaims in disbelief, taking me by my shoulders and shaking me so hard my head rolled back. "How could you _forget_? What kind of a girl are you?"

"Gee, thanks," I retort dryly when she finally stops shaking me. "It simply slipped my mind, that's all."

Dawn _tsk_s at me. "No, no. This will not do. You're going shopping with me after sixth period is over," she commanded. "Meet me on the school's steps. If you're not there ten minutes after class, I'll go to your house and drag you all the way to the mall if I have to." And with that, Dawn flips her hair over her shoulder and stalks walks away from me.

As I stand there watching her back disappear into the herd of students, I scrunch my nose up and grumble, "'Green the V-Day hater'? Seriously?"


	7. Chapter 7

Keeping true to her promise, Dawn drags me all the way to the mall. We are currently standing inside Macy's, Dawn's favorite store, and she's made me try on nine different dresses so far.

In my opinion, they all look great, but Dawn keeps saying things like, "No, that's awful. It totally makes your breasts seem two times smaller than they really are" and "That literally makes your thighs thunderous."

I groan for the fifth time when she says that the simple red, elegant dress I'm wearing doesn't flatter my hips. "Who cares?" I complain, throwing my hands in the air out of frustration. "It's just a stupid dance, and I don't want to be hot anyway. I want to disappoint Gary in the cruelest way possible."

Dawn laughs. "Aw, c'mon, Leafy. Give the guy a chance. Plus, I told all my friends that I'm helping you choose your dress, and if you show up wearing an un-flattering one, they're all going to question my fashion abilities. So, you have to be _perfect_."

"_Perfect_?" I swallow hard. "Don't you think that's a little, uh… it's a lot of pressure, I guess." I groan again. "Ugh. Now I'm going to be self-conscious for the rest of the night."

Dawn shakes her head at me, hiding a smile. "Get back in there," she demands playfully, shoving me back into the dressing room. "Try on that green one—green has always been your color."

"Duh, it's my last name. It'd just be weird if it didn't look good on me," I joke.

Dawn giggles and gives me the "shoo" hand motion. "Alright, alright, I'm going," I grumble, stepping inside the dressing room and locking the door.

I examine the dress from where I'm standing, trying to imagine if it'd appear nice on me before I try it on. Not being able to picture it, I sigh and take the dress off its hanger, removing the elegant red gown and putting this one on in its place.

I don't even look in the mirror before I unlock the door, not wanting to see what "monstrosity"—as Dawn had called the first dress I tried on—is on me now.

But when I step out, Dawn has this awed expression on her face and gasps loudly enough for a few customers to glance our way. I blush under their gazes, my eyes drifting down to stare at my feet.

"Yes, yes!" Dawn squeals. "That's the one! It's absolutely gorgeous, Leaf! I'll need to make a few alterations to the hem, but other than that, it's perfection!"

"Do you really think so?" I ask shyly.

"I know so." Dawn winks. She does that a lot. "Now, all we have to do is find some heals, a clutch, jewelry…"

I tune out the rest of what she's saying, not able to handle it.

Once I'm home about two hours before the dance, I huff in exhaustion.

I hope I never have to go shopping again.


	8. Chapter 8

As I'm doing the final touches to my makeup, the doorbell rings. I stare at myself in the full-length mirror, suddenly petrified.

Maybe this isn't such a great idea after all.

"Leaf!" my thirteen-year-old sister Aqua squeals. "Gary's here!"

My insides start to shake, but I slip on my two-inch turquoise peep-toe heels and grab the matching clutch anyway. If I do this, perhaps Gary will leave me alone from now on. And maybe I'll also get over my hatred for Valentine's Day, but I don't really see that happening.

Slowly opening my bedroom door, I carefully walk down the stairs—not wanting to trip from all the nervous shaking.

When they hear my heels clacking down the stairs, my mother Mia, Aqua and Gary peer over the banister at me. All three gasp, almost causing me to lose my footing. I grasp the railing harder to keep me steady, and my knuckles turn white.

"Leaf, you look beautiful, honey," my mother gushes, and my cheeks redden in response.

"Th-thank you, Mom." I warily glance around the room, trying to avoid their gazes. I'm so nervous now that I feel like I'm going to pass out.

Aqua tilts her head at me. "Are you okay, sis? You're a little pale."

"Yeah, I'm fine," I say in the most normal voice I can manage.

But my mom sees right through me. "Are you sure? You might be coming down with something…" she mutters something else under her breath and goes into the kitchen.

"Aqua, could you please give us a minute?" Gary asks, speaking for the first time since he arrived.

"Sure." Aqua winks suggestively at me and skips into the kitchen after our mom.

"What?" I snap, because he doesn't say anything. He just stares at me with that serious expression of his again.

Gary sighs, almost disappointedly. "You don't have to go if you don't want to. It was wrong of me to pressure you into going, especially since I know why you hate today so much. I'm really sorry, Leaf. I just wanted to change your mind about Valentine's Day, because it isn't all bad."

Tears threaten to spill from my eyes but I don't let them. After all, I didn't just spend thirty minutes doing my makeup for it to get ruined by this jerk. "I'm going," I say sternly.

Gary seems surprised. "What?"

"I_ said_, 'I'm going,'" I repeat. "I had to go to seven different stores with _Dawn _today just so that I could get all this." I gesture to my dress, the heels, the jewelry, and even the makeup. "Do you know what it's like to go _shopping _with Dawn Berlitz? Sure, the girl has mad fashion skills, but she's crazy! I had to try on nine different dresses just so I could look good for _you_, and now you're saying that I don't even have to _go_?" I breathe in and out several times once I finish my rant.

Gary's frown slowly turns into a wide smile. "You went shopping with Dawn just for me? Aw, Leafy, I'm touched!"

I glare playfully at him. "Shut up."

"Okay, but before I do, I want to give you this…" Gary reaches into the pocket of his tux—I don't notice until just now, but he looks amazing in it—and pulls out a light green tulip wrist corsage. "I wasn't sure what kind I should get you, as I didn't know what color your dress would be, but I went with green—'cause it's your last name." He gradually slips the corsage onto my wrist, his eyes never averting away from mine.

I smile my first real smile in a whole week. "Thank you, Gare-bear," I whisper. Gary's eyes light up, but before he can respond, Mom emerges from the kitchen.

"Leaf, are you feeling better now?" The knowing smile on her lips informs me that she heard everything.

I narrow my eyes at her. "Yes, _Mommy_. I'm just a bit nervous, that's all."

Aqua smirks at me. "You should be. Gare-bear's most likely gonna put the moves on you tonight," she practically squeals, and I can tell that she's loving every moment of my misery.

Mom hushes her. "Nobody will be putting the moves on anybody. I'll allow kissing, but there will be no funny business, now will there, Gary?" she asks firmly, and my cheeks instantly grow warm in embarrassment.

"Mom!" I hiss at her.

Gary chuckles. "I promise there will be no funny business, Ms. Green. However, I might not be able to stop myself from kissing her every five minutes if I'm allowed to."

Aqua squeaks in delight, and I wonder for a second if she's going to die of happiness.

Once I finally come to my senses, I gasp. "Ew, no! Mom, please take back what you said! There should be no kissing allowed!"

They all laugh at me, and my already fiery cheeks raise a few degrees.

"Let me go get the camera," Mom says, promptly ignoring my pleas.

I think I'll keel over from heat stroke if my night keeps going on like this.


	9. Chapter 9

I never expected the dance to be this crowded. There are over one-thousand students at my school, but I didn't think that eighty percent of them would come. I can't find May anywhere, and I'm starting to hyperventilate. It doesn't help that Gary keeps bugging me to dance with him.

"I'll dance with you _after _we find May and Drew," I tell him as I push my way through a mass of people.

"But Leafy," Gary whines, "they might not even be here yet."

I roll my eyes. "I texted May ten minutes ago, and she said that they got here right before us. So they have to be here _somewhere_."

Gary pouts. "Okay, we'll find them first. But you have to promise me you'll dance with me at some point. I want to see that dress in action." He winks at me, and I suppress the urge to blush. Instead, I opt for glaring at him.

"Shut up."

"Over here, Leaf!" I hear May's voice call out from behind us.

Gary and I turn around to see May and Drew making their way to us hand-in-hand. _So cute. _

May is absolutely stunning in a strapless hot pink ensemble. It has a modest sweetheart neckline, and the skirt flows in different shades of red and pink layers down to her kneecap. A rose corsage is pinned to her left hip. Her elbow-length chestnut hair is tied into a curly ponytail.

Drew is as handsome as ever in a black tuxedo and red button-down shirt with the top three buttons undone. His tie is hanging loosely around his neck, and a matching rose boutonnière is pinned over his heart. I hadn't thought to get Gary one, which makes me feel a bit guilty.

"May, have you seen yourself in the mirror?" I cry. "Where did you get that dress? You look amazing in it!"

May blushes. "Dawn helped me pick it out. It was rather exhausting going to so many stores with her, but it paid off in the end," she laughs.

"Dawn did the same to me this afternoon. I had to take a hot bath for almost an hour just to get rid of the soreness in my arms and legs." We both snicker at this.

"Girls are so weird," I hear Drew whisper to Gary.

"I know, right? It shouldn't take them five hours to go shopping for a dress they're only gonna wear once," Gary whines.

May and I exchange looks. "And it shouldn't take _you _forty-five minutes to do your hair," we say simultaneously, freaking them out.

May and I tell each other everything, and we even sometimes come up with retorts to comments that might come up at some point during the near future. This one in particular we discussed yesterday, knowing that at some point one of our dates—not that Gary's my date or anything—would bring up the fact that girls take forever to do certain things.

"How'd you do that?" Drew asks, looking at us oddly.

"_Shh_, it's a secret," May and I whisper in unison, amused.

Gary laughs. "Cool."

I shift my gaze towards the dance floor, where I see Misty and Ash. They're both beaming at each other as if they just met the love of their lives. "Aww, do you see how happy they are?" I gush, pointing towards the two. "It's so cute!"

May nods gleefully in agreement. "And look at her beautiful dress! I never thought I'd see the day that tomboy Misty Waterflower wears such a thing," she giggles.

May's right. Misty's dress is so gorgeous that I'm almost jealous.

The A-line, soft yellow number is perfect for Misty—simple. It glides elegantly to the floor, barely revealing her sneaker-clad feet. The waist is wrapped all the way around in orange gemstones, some trailing across her right breast and to the one-strapped shoulder. Her hair is down for once, curled even. I have to bite my lip hard to not burst out laughing when I see her corsage: an orange water flower. Ash can be so creative.

Shifting my eyes to Ash, I have to blink a few times to make sure it's actually him. I've never seen Ash look so handsome. He's always been my best guy friend, so I never really thought of him as attractive. He proved me wrong tonight by wearing a dashing white tuxedo and an orange button-down shirt and neon yellow bowtie. Ash also has a yellow poppy boutonnière pinned over his heart. If he didn't want to stand out, he failed miserably. He's the only guy here wearing such bright colors.

"Let's go say hi." Not waiting for a response, I dash over to the two and cut my way right in between them. Misty is ready to punch whoever dares to ruin their cuddly position, but when she realizes it's me, she grins. "Misty, you are positively radiant," I say in a fake British accent.

Misty curtsies. "As are you, Leafy," she declares in an accent better than mine. We both laugh and high five each other.

Misty and I have a more laid-back friendship. We don't tell each other everything, we don't argue every five minutes, and most importantly we respect each other.

I feel a tap on my shoulder and look over to see a grinning Ash. "Leaf!" he exclaims, wrapping his arms around my waist and lifting me up into a big hug. "We haven't hung out in ages. My mom misses you."

I smirk at him. "Did you not miss me?"

"Nope," he says innocently, but I can tell he's trying to fight off a laugh.

"Good, because I didn't miss you either."

Ash and I have this thing. If we don't see each other for a period of time, the next time we meet we say we didn't miss each other, even though we really do. I don't really know when or how it started, but it's just our thing.

May, Drew and Gary finally catch up to me, and when I see a cheerful Dawn and a miserable-looking Paul, I understand why it took them so long. Dawn talks your ear off.

Dawn is adorable in a formfitting petal pink dress that almost grazes her knees. The off-the-shoulder V-neck is decorated in grey and white feathers, matching the hem of the dress. She's wearing light grey four-inch heels (how does she walk in those?!), and has a soft pink chain-link purse hanging off of her right shoulder. Her hair is in a loose bun with several strands out to frame her face.

I almost fall over when I get a good look at Paul. He's actually wearing a tux! His button-down shirt is grey, and he's not wearing a tie. Neither Dawn nor Paul is wearing a corsage or boutonnière (respectively), so I briefly wonder if maybe they forgot or Paul had some conditions. Most likely the latter.

"I still can't believe you talked the Ice King into being your date," May snickers. Paul grunts at the nickname.

"It's all about the charm," Dawn says, winking.

"You do not have any charm," Paul growls.

"Of course I do, silly."

I roll my eyes and everyone else laughs.

"C'mon, May, let's go dance." Drew grabs May's hand and drags her out to the dance floor. I watch as May flushes pink and stands stock still. She's never been a very good dancer.

"Yeah, let's dance, Paulie-Waulie," Dawn giggles and somehow manages to push Paul to the edge of all the dancing people.

Ash starts whining something about being hungry. Misty whacks him upside the head and then follows him to the refreshments table.

"So it's just me and you now," Gary purrs in my ear, causing me to jump and nearly wet my pants—or dress, I guess.

Speaking of which… I glance down to make sure nothing is out of place or has food on it somewhere.

The halter sweetheart neckline dips down low enough to show just the right amount of cleavage (I don't like low-cut shirts or dresses much because it makes me feel like I'm showing my boobs to the world), and the upper-half of the dress is completely covered in teal gemstones so that you can't even see the fabric underneath. The skirt is two different shades of green: jade and malachite. The two colors mingle together until about mid-thigh, where the fabric separates down the middle and fans out in opposite directions, and the jade continues on the left side while the malachite is on the right. The dress ends right under my knees, and my waist-length hair is also loosely curled (something I don't normally do), courtesy of my mother.

"Stop worrying so much," Gary says soothingly. "You look incredible."

My face feels hot. "I don't know if 'incredible' is the right word, but thank you. You aren't too bad yourself." I stick my tongue out at him.

"Of course," Gary chuckles. He grabs me by my waist and pulls me close to him. "Dance with me?"

"Mhmm." Arceus, I love the smell of his cologne. It's making my mind all fuzzy. Or is that because his arms are around me?

He leads me to the dance floor just as "Enchanted" by Taylor Swift turns on. I try to hide my grin; I love Taylor Swift.

Wrapped up in Gary's arms, I decide that now is a good time to take in my surroundings. I had been in such a hurry to find May earlier that I never really got the chance.

However, I find myself being disappointed. Sure, the dance committee did a great job, but it looks almost exactly like the school hallways. Hearts everywhere, streamers, Valentine chocolates...

Seeing it all, I'm abruptly hauled out of the trance I've been under for the past three days.

What am I _doing _here? I'm supposed to hate Valentine's Day, not go to a dance in its honor! The fact that I'm here with Gary-mother-freaking-Oak finally sinks in, and I mentally shave my head as punishment.

How could I come here with him? How could I betray the promise I made to myself three years ago to never let another womanizer in my heart, especially on this day of the year? How could I give up so easily?

I push Gary away so hard he lands on his butt. I don't wait to help him up. I simply run.

My reality is crashing down.


	10. Chapter 10

"_No," I cried out as I tried to push him away from me. He only leaned in further. "Why are you doing this?" _

_I was sobbing so hard that I barely heard his response. "Because I ought to get what I deserve. Did you really think I was in love with you?" he chuckled. "Silly Leafy. You should know that when a guy wants to be your boyfriend, he really just wants to fuck you. I didn't put up with your mood swings for two months just to get nothing out of it. So if you want to breakup, I'm getting what I want first." _

"_Stop, Jared. Please. You don't want to do this." He wasn't listening to me; he was too busy trying to rip my shirt off. I fought back with every ounce of strength I had, but it was seeping out of me quickly. All of a sudden my head began to pound furiously, and my vision blackened from the onslaught. "D-did you… dru-drug me?" I couldn't speak clearly anymore, and my voice didn't even sound like my own. _

_His hands roamed down to my jean shorts, unbuttoning them. He had successfully gotten my shirt off, but luckily he hadn't taken off my bra yet. _

"_Of course I did, sweetie. I'm not stupid enough to leave you coherent." _

_My gasp sounded stifled, and I realized it was because his lips were crushed against mine. Once he pulled away to tear my shorts off, I whispered, "You've done… done th-this befo-re… haven't you?" _

_He shushed me. "That's for me to know, and for you to never find out." _

"_So basically, yes?" I snapped, but instantly regretted it when he slapped me hard on the cheek. _

"_Shut up," he growled, and forcefully picked me up, carrying me to his bed. _

_I started sobbing harder. "No!" I choked out. "I won't let you do this to me!" _

_He threw me on his bed, straddling me. I stayed still, waiting for some kind of opportunity to run. _

_It didn't come for several minutes. It was when he started unbuckling his belt, because he had to stand. I was only in my panties now. _

_While he was distracted, I slowly inched my way closer to the bedside table. Right when he was pulling his pants down, I yanked the lamp up and smashed it on his head, knocking him out cold. _

_I was so terrified I could barely breathe. I scrambled up quickly and grabbed my clothes; I didn't have time to put them on now. Before I left, I felt like I had to at least make sure he was still alive. So I quickly pressed two of my fingers on his neck, and when I felt a pulse I sighed in relief and then ran out of there as fast as I could. _

_After finding a nice tree to hide behind and put my clothes back on, I dried my tears and tried to calm myself down so that my mother wouldn't notice anything was wrong. _

_I didn't sleep for weeks. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw his beautiful face. But then it morphed, his kind eyes becoming evil and his sweet smile twisting into the most conniving smirk I had ever seen. _

_I wasn't the same person after that. He killed my love for Valentine's Day, the day that used to be the happiest one of the year for me, even more so than Christmas. But now it's destroyed. _

_He destroyed me. _


	11. Chapter 11

No one knows what really happened three years ago. I lied, saying that we got into a fight and he broke up with me.

One day I accidently told Gary that Jared tried to get into my pants the night we broke up, but I had quickly covered it up by saying that I told Jared to back off, and he did. Total lie.

I thought about going to the police several times. But I know no one would believe me, so I never did. I also tried to find the other girls he's victimized, but I couldn't get any information out of his past girlfriends.

I sprint out of the school and down the road that leads to my house as fast as my feet can carry me. I only stop for a second to peel my heels off before continuing.

"Leaf, wait!" Gary's familiar voice calls urgently a couple hundred feet behind me.

I run faster, sobs racking my entire body. _Stop following me_, I beg silently. _Please. I just want to be alone. _

My toe jams into a pebble, and before I know it I'm crashing to the ground. My knees scrape against the pavement, and I yelp loudly as the skin tears.

I don't make any effort to stand up. I just lie there in the middle of the road, sobbing. Broken.

It feels like I stay there for hours, but really it must have been less than a minute because Gary's strong arms wrap tightly around my waist, picking me up off the road.

He doesn't say anything, which I'm grateful for. I'm so upset right now that I don't think I'd be able to handle it if he starts lecturing me.

He carries me all the way to his house, where he sits down on the front porch with me sitting sideways in his lap. I finally stop sobbing about five minutes later. I have to untangle my arms from his neck in order to wipe all the tears away from my face.

When Gary thinks I'm calm enough, he asks softly, "What was that back there?"

"Nothing," I croak.

Gary sighs impatiently, but his voice stays soothing. "That was not nothing, Leafy."

"I lied to you three years ago. To everyone," I hear myself saying, but now that I've started I can't seem to stop. "Jared and I didn't break up because I wouldn't let him have sex with me. Well, I guess that's part of it, but it's not the full truth…" Tears leak out of my eyes again. I start to see the scene unfold in front of me over and over again.

Gary doesn't say anything. He knows just as well as I do that if he talks now, I'll stop.

"He… he almost raped me, Gare," I manage to choke out. I'm sobbing again. "I kept telling him no, but he wouldn't listen. I barely got away from him."

Gary is completely frozen. I don't have to look up at his face to know that it's murderous. "Why didn't you tell me?" he growls through clenched teeth.

"I didn't tell anybody."

"Why not?" Gary yells, startling me so badly I jump. "You can't just let him get away with that, Leaf! What if he's doing it to other girls?"

I breathe out raggedly. "H-he hinted that he'd done it to others. But I was so scared that no one would believe me that I just… I just…"

Gary seems to understand. He pulls me so tightly to his chest that I can barely breathe. I sink into his embrace, crying mutely into the jacket of this tux.

Several minutes pass in silence. Gary has his nose buried into the crook of my neck, and my face is right next to his, our lips dangerously close.

Painfully slowly, Gary tilts his jaw closer. He hesitates right before our lips meet, and I have the feeling that the only reason he's stopping himself from kissing me is because of my fragile state.

Realizing that I have to make the first move, I shut my swollen eyes. Then I lean in, and the distance between us closes.

It's magical. The way his perfect lips are softly grazing mine, the way his hands flutter up to the sides of my face, the way he moans when I tenderly bite his lower lip.

He starts to pull away, but I don't let him. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him back in, and when our lips meet again, it's different from the first time. Hungry. Longing.

He brushes his tongue under my lip, begging for entry. It doesn't take long for me to comply; I part my lips and let him do the rest.

Gary seems to like it when I moan. Every time I do, he bites my upper lip, causing me to moan louder.

I reluctantly pull away when I'm finally out of oxygen. Gary looks as if he wants to kiss me for forever, but he holds himself back. I don't really blame him; because that was the most amazing kiss I've had in my entire life.

"Gare-bear," I whimper, hugging him closer to me.

"Leafy." Gary nuzzles my probably beet red cheeks.

I sigh blissfully. "Thank you…"

I really needed that.


	12. Chapter 12

I thought that I'd hate Valentine's Day for the rest of my life after what Jared did to me, but that day with Gary all those months ago… It was probably the best day of my life since before the incident.

Speaking of which, Jared will be going to prison for two years. Gary helped me find the other girls he's raped, and I was shocked to find six of them. Anyway, we all banded together and created a strong case against him. Two years in prison isn't nearly long enough in my opinion, but at least it's something, right?

Of course I had to come clean with my friends and family about the whole "Jared almost raped me" thing, and that was though, but Gary got me through it.

Gary and I became an official couple about a month after the dance. May, Misty and Dawn are so supportive of our relationship it's ridiculous. Naturally, the three of them had "the talk" with Gary at some point, which basically translates to: "If you dare hurt her we'll sell your body parts for cash."

I love my friends.

Dawn and I have gotten a lot closer since the dance. We go shopping together at least once a week (it's not so bad anymore, it just takes some getting used to), and we even found a bunch of things that we have in common.

But Gary is definitely the one I've gotten the closest to in the past several months. He's helped me get through a lot, and I'm so grateful for that.

I've known for a while now that I love him.

I can only hope he loves me too.


	13. Chapter 13

P.S. Just thought I should let you know… Gary has completely changed my mind about Valentine's Day. It is officially my favorite holiday once again. Wahoo! *wink wink*

(So you can change the name of the story. Because, really, it totally just gives people wrong vibe, y'know? … No? Okay.)

Sincerely,

Leaf


	14. Chapter 14

Author's Note:

**PHEW. I'M DONE. FINALLY. **

**I hope you liked it! I've been working on it non-stop for three days. (there's only 4 reasons I ever stopped: a) sleep b) food c) full bladder d) to write staged love.) LOL **

**So sorry if there's a bunch of mistakes! This is my first time writing in 1st person AND present tense, sooooo... yea. I hope it's okay, tho. **

**Also, thank you, guest reader Sam! I really liked your suggestion, so I did it. ;) **

**Thank you so much for reading! It'd mean the world to me if you could please favorite/review? c: **

**Love you guys! **

~CeeCee~


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